Published: Tuesday, September 10, 2013 at 04:35 PM.

Residents at a local assisted living facility were able to see parts of New Bern from the air on Monday afternoon.

Croatan Village Assisted Living in New Bern hosted helicopter rides for residents of the facility to kick off a week of activities in honor of National Assisted Living Week.

Timmy Brothers flew a helicopter carrying two residents and one staff member at a time. Each flight was expected to last about 10 to 12 minutes, touring downtown New Bern and the area surrounding the facility.

Brothers is the owner of Colonial Capital Helicopters, a company that provides scenic tours in New Bern, Morehead City, Atlantic Beach, Cape Lookout, Shackleford Banks and the Outer Banks.

For one resident, the ride was more than just a ride. It was, in part, a birthday celebration.

Virginia Ghelli celebrated her 96th birthday on Monday and did something she hadn’t done in all those years — ride in a helicopter.

“I was nervous when I was going up, but when I was up there, I was fine,” Ghelli said. “I wouldn’t want to go up all the time though.”

Residents at a local assisted living facility were able to see parts of New Bern from the air on Monday afternoon.

Croatan Village Assisted Living in New Bern hosted helicopter rides for residents of the facility to kick off a week of activities in honor of National Assisted Living Week.

Timmy Brothers flew a helicopter carrying two residents and one staff member at a time. Each flight was expected to last about 10 to 12 minutes, touring downtown New Bern and the area surrounding the facility.

Brothers is the owner of Colonial Capital Helicopters, a company that provides scenic tours in New Bern, Morehead City, Atlantic Beach, Cape Lookout, Shackleford Banks and the Outer Banks.

For one resident, the ride was more than just a ride. It was, in part, a birthday celebration.

Virginia Ghelli celebrated her 96th birthday on Monday and did something she hadn’t done in all those years — ride in a helicopter.

“I was nervous when I was going up, but when I was up there, I was fine,” Ghelli said. “I wouldn’t want to go up all the time though.”

Staff members from Croatan Village and co-pilot Misty Grist helped usher residents to and from the helicopter, reassuring them during the walk to the helicopter and hearing about the excitement of the ride on the way back.

“When I found out they were going to do this, I asked how much it would cost and they said it wouldn’t cost anything,” said Wayne Strausbaugh, whose father is a resident at Croatan Village.

Mike Bateman, owner of Croatan Village, has provided the helicopter rides at no cost to residents for three years.

“He’s just an awesome owner,” said Lin Schulze, marketing director for the facility. “His heart and soul are in this building.”

Shay Williams, healthcare coordinator, appeared to be calm in the minutes leading up to her departure.

“I’ve been in a plane, but I don’t think it will be the same,” Williams said.

Other staff members scheduled to ride the helicopter did not hesitate to vocalize their jitters.

“The residents tend to be more excited than the staff,” Grist said. “Staff members are usually more reserved about the ride.”

Croatan Village is a 72-bed assisted living facility that includes an 18-bed unit dedicated to residents with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of memory impairment.

Megan Beyer can be reached at 252-635-5671 or megan.beyer@newbernsj.com.